The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe
Encyclopedia
The Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe is a 1972
French
comedy film
directed by Yves Robert
, written by Francis Veber
, starring Pierre Richard
, Jean Rochefort
and Bernard Blier
. The film's sequel, Le Retour du Grand Blond
, was released in 1974.
Filmed in French
, as of 2007 it is available for sale on DVD
with English subtitles
on the Russian
release, with subtitles in English or Russian, or audio in Russian or French. A British release is also available.
The film was remade in English as The Man with One Red Shoe
.
Perrache happens to select François Perrin, an unsuspecting violin
ist, who is noticeable because as the result of a practical joke he has arrived wearing a black shoe on one foot and a reddish-brown one on the other. Milan takes the bait and immediately begins a series of attempts to find out what Perrin knows—blind to the fact that Perrin knows nothing at all about espionage, although he is an expert on music. Milan's machinations involve Perrin in a series of increasingly peculiar adventures, and although he is largely oblivious to the mayhem Milan causes to occur around him, he can't help noticing the beautiful femme fatale, Christine. In a startling scene, she greets him at her door in a demure high-necked black-velvet dress, then turns around and shows that the dress is backless, displaying discreet buttock cleavage
. (A similar dress is seen once again—at a symphony concert—in the sequel film, Le Retour du Grand Blond.)
A slapstick love scene ensues, followed by more mayhem and treachery, leading to the death of several secret-service thugs and the downfall of Milan. Toulouse watches the chaos serenely.
The film ends, as it had begun, at Orly. Perrin is pushing a huge Louis Vuitton
steamer trunk in an airport luggage cart, talking softly to it. (Apparently Christine is inside.) Their destination is Rio
.
in 1973. It was nominated as Best Foreign Film at the National Board of Review (1973).
1972 in film
The year 1972 in film involved some significant events.-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:*Avanti!, directed by Billy Wilder, starring Jack Lemmon and Juliet MillsB...
French
Cinema of France
The Cinema of France comprises the art of film and creative movies made within the nation of France or by French filmmakers abroad.France is the birthplace of cinema and was responsible for many of its early significant contributions. Several important cinematic movements, including the Nouvelle...
comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
directed by Yves Robert
Yves Robert
Yves Robert was a French actor, screenwriter, director, and producer.Born in Saumur, Maine-et-Loire, in his teens Robert went to Paris to pursue a career in acting, starting with unpaid parts on stage in the city's various theatre workshops. To support himself, he worked at a variety of jobs...
, written by Francis Veber
Francis Veber
Francis Paul Veber is a French film director, screenwriter and producer, and theater playwright. Many of his French comedies feature recurring types of characters, named François Pignon and François Perrin...
, starring Pierre Richard
Pierre Richard
Pierre Richard is a popular French actor best known for the roles of a clumsy daydreamer in comedy films...
, Jean Rochefort
Jean Rochefort
Jean Rochefort is a French actor, with a career that has spanned over five decades.Rochefort was born in Paris, France. He was educated at the Lycée Pierre Corneille in Rouen He was 19 years old when he entered the Centre d'Art Dramatique de la rue Blanche. Later he joined the Conservatoire National...
and Bernard Blier
Bernard Blier
Bernard Blier was a French character actor. His rotund features and premature baldness allowed him to often play cuckolded husbands in his early career. He proved to be one of France's most versatile and sought-after character actors, performing interchangeably in comedies and dramas...
. The film's sequel, Le Retour du Grand Blond
The Return of the Tall Blond Man with One Black Shoe
Le Retour du Grand Blond is a film directed by Yves Robert, in 1974. It is the continuation of Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire .-Synopsis:...
, was released in 1974.
Filmed in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, as of 2007 it is available for sale on DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
with English subtitles
Subtitle (captioning)
Subtitles are textual versions of the dialog in films and television programs, usually displayed at the bottom of the screen. They can either be a form of written translation of a dialog in a foreign language, or a written rendering of the dialog in the same language, with or without added...
on the Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
release, with subtitles in English or Russian, or audio in Russian or French. A British release is also available.
The film was remade in English as The Man with One Red Shoe
The Man with One Red Shoe
The Man With One Red Shoe is a 1985 comedy film directed by Stan Dragoti. It is a remake of a 1972 French film Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire starring Pierre Richard and Mireille Darc...
.
Synopsis
The chief of the French secret service, Louis Toulouse, in a plot to discredit his second in command, Bernard Milan (who is himself plotting to discredit Toulouse so that he can supplant him), sends his assistant, Perrache, to choose at random someone from the crowd of travelers arriving at the Orly airport, having made Milan believe that Perrache has gone to meet a master spy who will expose Milan's treachery.Perrache happens to select François Perrin, an unsuspecting violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
ist, who is noticeable because as the result of a practical joke he has arrived wearing a black shoe on one foot and a reddish-brown one on the other. Milan takes the bait and immediately begins a series of attempts to find out what Perrin knows—blind to the fact that Perrin knows nothing at all about espionage, although he is an expert on music. Milan's machinations involve Perrin in a series of increasingly peculiar adventures, and although he is largely oblivious to the mayhem Milan causes to occur around him, he can't help noticing the beautiful femme fatale, Christine. In a startling scene, she greets him at her door in a demure high-necked black-velvet dress, then turns around and shows that the dress is backless, displaying discreet buttock cleavage
Buttock cleavage
Buttock cleavage is minor exposure of the buttocks and the gluteal cleft between them, often because of low-slung or loose trousers. The crena is another formal term for the cleft between the buttocks.- History :...
. (A similar dress is seen once again—at a symphony concert—in the sequel film, Le Retour du Grand Blond.)
A slapstick love scene ensues, followed by more mayhem and treachery, leading to the death of several secret-service thugs and the downfall of Milan. Toulouse watches the chaos serenely.
The film ends, as it had begun, at Orly. Perrin is pushing a huge Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton
Louis Vuitton Malletier – commonly referred to as Louis Vuitton , or shortened to LV – is a French fashion house founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton. The label is well known for its LV monogram, which is featured on most products, ranging from luxury trunks and leather goods to ready-to-wear, shoes,...
steamer trunk in an airport luggage cart, talking softly to it. (Apparently Christine is inside.) Their destination is Rio
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
.
Awards
The film won the Silver Bear award at the 23rd Berlin International Film Festival23rd Berlin International Film Festival
The 23rd annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from June 22 to July 3, 1973.-Jury:* David Robinson * Freddy Buache* Hiram Garcia Borja* Eberhard Hauff* Harish Khanna* Paul Moor* Walter Müller-Bringmann* René Thévenet...
in 1973. It was nominated as Best Foreign Film at the National Board of Review (1973).
Cast
- Pierre RichardPierre RichardPierre Richard is a popular French actor best known for the roles of a clumsy daydreamer in comedy films...
— François Perrin - Bernard BlierBernard BlierBernard Blier was a French character actor. His rotund features and premature baldness allowed him to often play cuckolded husbands in his early career. He proved to be one of France's most versatile and sought-after character actors, performing interchangeably in comedies and dramas...
— Bernard Milan - Jean RochefortJean RochefortJean Rochefort is a French actor, with a career that has spanned over five decades.Rochefort was born in Paris, France. He was educated at the Lycée Pierre Corneille in Rouen He was 19 years old when he entered the Centre d'Art Dramatique de la rue Blanche. Later he joined the Conservatoire National...
— ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Louis Toulouse - Mireille DarcMireille DarcMireille Darc is a French model and actress. She was Alain Delon's longtime co-star and companion. She appeared as a lead character in Jean-Luc Godard's 1967 film Week End...
— Christine - Tania Balachova — The mother of Louis Toulouse
- Jean CarmetJean CarmetJean Carmet, born July 25, 1920 in Bourgueil, Indre-et-Loire, France; died April 20, 1994 in Sèvres, Hauts-de-Seine, was a French actor.-Biography:...
— Maurice Lefebvre - Colette Castel — Paulette Lefebvre
- Paul Person — Perrache
- Jean Obé — Botrel
- Robert Manor House — Georghiu
- Jean Saudray — Poucet
- Roger Caccia — Mr. Boudart
- Arlette Balkis — Mrs. Boudart
- Robert Dalban — The False Deliveryman
Derivative Films
- 1974: Le Retour du Grand BlondThe Return of the Tall Blond Man with One Black ShoeLe Retour du Grand Blond is a film directed by Yves Robert, in 1974. It is the continuation of Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire .-Synopsis:...
directed by Yves RobertYves RobertYves Robert was a French actor, screenwriter, director, and producer.Born in Saumur, Maine-et-Loire, in his teens Robert went to Paris to pursue a career in acting, starting with unpaid parts on stage in the city's various theatre workshops. To support himself, he worked at a variety of jobs...
is the direct continuation of Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire. - 1985: The Man With One Red ShoeThe Man with One Red ShoeThe Man With One Red Shoe is a 1985 comedy film directed by Stan Dragoti. It is a remake of a 1972 French film Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire starring Pierre Richard and Mireille Darc...
directed by Stan DragotiStan DragotiStan Dragoti is an Albanian American film director, whose work includes the comedies Mr. Mom and Love at First Bite....
, with Tom HanksTom HanksThomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks is an American actor, producer, writer, and director. Hanks worked in television and family-friendly comedies, gaining wide notice in 1988's Big, before achieving success as a dramatic actor in several notable roles, including Andrew Beckett in Philadelphia, the title...
and Dabney ColemanDabney ColemanDabney Wharton Coleman is an American actor, best known for his roles in 9 to 5, WarGames, You've Got Mail, Sworn to Silence, The Beverly Hillbillies and as the voice of Principal Peter Prickly in Recess and Recess: School's Out.-Early life:Coleman was born in Austin, Texas, the son of Mary...
, is an American remakeRemakeA remake is a piece of media based primarily on an earlier work of the same medium.-Film:The term "remake" is generally used in reference to a movie which uses an earlier movie as the main source material, rather than in reference to a second, later movie based on the same source...
.